I was nearly kidnapped at a rest stop

Throwaway here, because my main account is tied to my real identity. I just wanted to share a personal story and ask for advice and/or similar stories. Also please bare with me as English isn't my native language.<br><br>When I was 17 my mom and I went on a road trip from our town to another town in a different state. The trip is about 4 hours in total, and there are several rest stops along the way where you can stop for a few minutes to take a bathroom break and maybe grab a snack. When we finished eating our snacks and were about to leave one of the rest stops we stopped at on the way there a man approached us and began to talk to us. He asked where we were headed and how long we had been on the road, and my mom (being a very friendly woman) began to talk to him and answer his questions. He seemed like a decent guy. After a while he suggested that we leave the rest stop because he said there was a lot of traffic behind the rest stop and it would be better if we left at the same time. For some reason it never occurred to either me or my mom that this was just a random man approaching us at a rest stop, and we followed him to his car and got in. We were in the back seats of his car. There was another guy in the front passenger seat, and I remember us chatting and laughing. I'm not sure what was going on in my moms head at the time but I was completely unaware that this was wrong. <br><br>Suddenly he says "Oh I think we took a wrong turn, lets stop at a gas station up ahead to get directions". We follow him into the gas station parking lot and once he parks I notice there is no gas station. It's basically a small parking lot in the middle of nowhere with nothing but trees surrounding it. Thats when it hits me that we are in a car full of strangers, and we are in an isolated area. I look over at my mom, and I can tell by the look on her face she is thinking the same thing, but she remains calm. The guy in the passenger seat gets out of the car and I assume he is going into the "gas station" to get directions, but in reality he is just walking away. The driver turns around and says "You know I'm not really going to get you ladies to your destination, I just said that to get you in the car." My mom and I look at each other and I honestly do not know how she remained so calm. And I know this is going to sound fucked up, but she told the driver to let us out of the car or she would scream at the top of her lungs. And the craziest part of it all? IT WORKED. He let us out of the car and we walked down the road until we reached a house and asked to use their phone to call the police. And that was it. We were just expected to go back on our road trip as if nothing had happened.<br><br>After that I just could never shake off the feeling that something was off. Anytime someone approached us talking to my mom I just automatically assumed they were trying to kidnap us. I never forgot about that day. And to think about how naive and unaware we both were that day sends chills down my spine. But at the same time it comforts me to know that my mom and I got out of that situation alive, and that no harm was done. So I guess whoever that was, lets not meet again.